The Atomic Odyssey
by KaijuCorp
Summary: The world has descended into an age of monsters, and G-Force struggles against the onslaught of kaiju. With his renegade crew aboard the Gotengo, Captain Sterling Phillion plans to dodge G-Force and bring down the king of the monsters once and for all.
1. The Predator

PROLOGUE - The Predator

_"It is important to realize that the Earth has been severely altered. We must assume that another Godzilla will emerge in the near future. We must also assume that many other organisms will be affected by nuclear testing, resulting in similar mutations. Although we will remember today as a victory, I fear we have entered into an age of monsters."_

_-Dr. Kyohei Yamane 1954_

X-X-X-X-X

The ocean was stained with blood, where lifeless eyes stared up from hollow corpses. Bones and skulls tumbled and sank into the abyss while entrails and flesh littered the waves. Miles and miles of the surface had been transformed into a hell on Earth.

He had seen worse. Such grizzly sights no longer bothered Commander Frank Randolph. Still, it was hard to believe that only a few hours ago this massacre had been alive and swimming through the ocean. Intelligence told him it was a pod of blue whales, but the state of the carnage made it difficult to know for sure. Sometime between then and now, the intricate network of bones and organs were viciously ripped apart. The predator had eaten its fill and moved on, leaving behind this morbid sight. G-Force didn't know which kaiju had been responsible for the killing, but it certainly wasn't friendly.

Commander Randolph had enough. He passed his binoculars to another sailor and moved on. The balcony was packed with curious onlookers, all pushing to get a good look at the nightmarish slaughter. They quickly moved out of the way as their Commander plowed through.

He bellowed over the chatter of his crew, "Don't you maggots have anywhere else to be?"

Three G-Force ships trudged through the red waters. Leading them was the _JDF Susanoo_, the Commander's enormous destroyer of fifteen years. _Susanoo_ was equipped with row upon row of maser turrets and artillery batteries. It was a striking spectrum of G-Force weaponry. Above the guns stood the control bridge, and it was where the Commander spent most of his time shouting orders and pacing around in frustration.

Following in the _Susannoo_'s wake were two smaller ships, the _USS Athens _and the _USS Washington_. Both looked downright juvenile next to the _Susanoo_, but they were all that was available.

Satellite images from G-Force's orbital station, Moonlight SY-2, had shown that a massacre took place just north of Hawaii at 9:30 am on August 4th 2010. The only creature capable of such carnage was a kaiju. Normally, an event like this would take place far out in the open ocean, but this was dangerously close to Hawaiian shores. The trio of ships were sent out thirty minutes later to investigate. But if Randolph's suspicions were correct, three destroyers wouldn't be enough to withstand the kind of trouble they were in for.

Inside _Susanoo_'sbridge, the air was choked with radio chatter, the hum of machinery, the typing of keys. Randolph marched down the aisle, came to a stop, and stood over a young Officer. The Officer's name escaped Randolph at the moment, but the boy was in charge of monitoring chemical patterns. Right now there was only one reading Commander Randolph cared about.

"Any spike in radiation?"

"We're getting something from the carcasses. Reading a steady increase in Strotium-90."

"Shit." Randolph rubbed his brow.

He hurried to another young Officer and gripped his shoulder, "Anything on the sonar?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary."

"Keep an eye on it."

The crowd of sailors were still wasting time out on the balcony, fighting to get a look at the blood-streaked ocean. Randolph stormed out, crashing through the door, "Stop fucking around and get to your stations! Now!" His voice was like a can of tear gas, and the crowd immediately dispersed.

Randolph locked himself back in the bridge. He double checked the bolts on the door, then took a deep breath.

The kill was too fresh. The blood hadn't dispersed. The predator was still in the area.

And if the predator had left traces of Strotium-90 in the carcasses, Randolph knew exactly who the culprit was.

"Commander!" An Officer across the bridge yelled, "Something just broke the surface, twenty kilometers west!"

"Do we have a visual?"

No need.

Blue light flooded the windows. A tremendous blast punched into the port side of the _Susanoo_, threatening to rip the entire ship apart. Randolph clutched the side of a console, barely managing to stay on his feet. Others weren't so lucky. Bodies hurled across the room. Men slammed into the walls.

The ship recoiled as the blast finally eased. Randolph stumbled. Officers climbed back into their seats. Warning klaxons blared overhead.

"Damage report!" Randolph demanded, hurrying down the aisle.

"MBT Masers thirteen through twenty are offline!"

"The port hull is caving in! Initiating failsafe operations!"

"What about the Firilium Shield?" Randolph asked.

"It's holding up, sir!"

They were still floating. After a direct hit from a nuclear ray, that was an admirable achievement. Thank God for the _Susanoo_. She had seen worse.

"Turn those klaxons off!" The Commander shouted.

The sirens went dead just as a deep boom rattled through the ship's steel. The sound of thunder, but they were okay. Someone else had taken a hit.

"The _Athens_ has been cut in two!" An Officer shouted in utter disbelief, "She's sinking!"

"Quick, fire our batteries and draw the target's attention! Order the _Washington _to retreat!"

"Sir, what if it attacks us again?"

"Fire! Now!"

Their cannons went off in a non-stop succession of ear-splitting blasts. Randolph hurried to a window, still struggling to keep his balance as the ship swayed in the rough waters. Skidding to a stop, the Commander grabbed a railing.

He felt his heart skip a beat.

Its body looked like a dark mountain on the horizon, gigantic and framed in artillery smoke. It stood perfectly still, unfazed by the assault. Even from twelve miles away, Randolph could feel the predator watching them. Its dark eyes were fixed, hunting prey.

"_USS Washington _is retreating from the battlefield." An Officer confirmed, "What about us sir?"

"The Firilium shield can withstand another blast. We'll be fine." Randolph assured his crew, but deep down he was terrified. They were ants fighting against a lion.

Artillery detonated all around the monster in a storm of smoke and fire. Apathetic to the assault, the predator turned away. It ducked and vanished beneath the surface, slipping out of sight. Randolph knew it wasn't injured. Organizer G-1 didn't allow for its host to sustain injury. Mankind's arsenal was useless. Always had been.

"Hold your fire!" Randolph ordered.

Weapons Officers repeated the command into their headsets. The cannons ceased their barrage. An eerie silence settled on the battlefield, broken only by the red waves lapping at their hull.

"Sonar report, the target is retreating!" An Officer confirmed from somewhere behind the Commander.

The crew took a collective sigh, relaxing into their seats. Some had to get up and walk around. Others just stared off into space, stunned. Randolph hung his head and said a silent prayer.

"Did we scare him off?" Someone asked.

"No." Commander Randolph knew better, "He just got tired of us. Begin rescue operations for the crew of the _Athens_."

While the rest of the crew scrambled to salvage their fellow sailors, a young Communications Officer pressed her palm up to her earpiece. She blinked, a little startled to hear the voice on the other line, then she called her Commander over.

"What is it?" Randolph barked, marching across the bridge.

"Admiral Yoshiyuki is calling from Headquarters. He says it's urgent."

The Officer didn't have to clarify that last part. A direct line from the G-Force Admiral was always urgent. Randolph hurried to take the call, unaware that today's encounter with the king of monsters would be nothing compared to the sinister task awaiting him.


	2. Captain and Crew

Chapter I - Captain and Crew

_"Beware: for I am fearless and therefor powerful."_

_ Engraving on Captain Sterling Phillion's ship_

USS Thunderbird _(1997-2003)_

X-X-X-X-X

Sunlight didn't exist at 1,500 feet below the ocean's surface. There was only a crushing darkness hiding an alien world. A blinding spotlight cut through the void. Otherworldly creatures fluttered away, back to the safety of their unseen realm. The light scanned like an all-seeing eye with methodical precision. More and more of the creatures grew curious. They swam up to inspect the light's source, brighter than anything they'd ever seen.

Inside their primitive brains, it was some sort of gigantic animal. The intruder was rusted with aging metal, and its skin was decorated in fading paint. Its shape was long and streamlined to break through the water. But its most prominent and startling feature was the front drill, adorned with barbs and rifts. No animal they knew had a weapon like that.

After inspection, they lost interest and ventured off. It wasn't a predator and it was too big to eat. It was useless. But to mankind, this was the _Gotengo_, a war machine designed to slay monsters.

The darkness crushed its beam, choking the light out within a few hundred feet. Nonetheless, the light finally settled. Something was shining in the distance. Upon closer scrutiny it became clear that a round metallic plate was floating through a school of jellyfish.

X-X-X-X-X

Captain Sterling Phillion rested his book on the arm of the command chair. "Is that our secondary fuel cap?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Without a doubt."

"God dammit." He sighed. After his mechanic heard something break off, Phillion was expecting to scour the ocean for hours. That's why he brought a book to read. Fortunately, Takuya found the problem within a few minutes. Unfortunately, it was a fuel cap.

His only companion on the ship's bridge was the veteran pilot Raymond Takuya, operating the massive spotlight and struggling to keep it fixed on the floating piece of machinery. The two men were roughly the same age, although Takuya's hair was beginning to grey.

Phillion hopped up from his command chair, then descended a short staircase, "Anything we can do to retrieve something like that?"

Takuya groaned, "I'm still getting familiar with this ship. So _no_, not that I know of."

"Well then. How bad do you think it is?" Phillion leaned over Takuya's shoulder, glancing at a series of intricate monitors and instruments.

"Lucas would know more than I do, but I think we'll be alright."

"Just alright?" Phillion asked, concerned.

"We still have the _primary_ fuel cap. You should just have Lucas keep an eye on it."

"Yeah," Phillion nodded, "The last thing we want is to start leaking rocket fuel." He hit Takuya's shoulder.

"It would've been nice if we lost something else," Takuya suggested, "A Firilium plate, maybe. We have plenty of those back in storage."

"And we need them. Pass me the intercom." Phillion held out his hand.

Takuya pretended not to hear him, "What was that?"

"_Please_ pass me the intercom, _darling_." The Captain joked.

Takuya reached over the control panel and unhooked a receiver, "Don't say anything you'll regret saying later." He passed it off, swatting away its coiled wire.

"Arigato," Phillion held up the intercom, "This is your Captain speaking. Just so you know, we've lost our secondary fuel cap, so if you see anything leaking or on fire _please_ don't keep it to yourself." He hung up. "Ray, as always I appreciate your hard work."

Takuya shut down the spotlight and turned to his Captain, "No more stalling, we have to get moving. The ship's falling apart for God's sake."

Phillion did his best to act offended, "What makes you think I'm stalling? No. We're just being patient."

Takuya rolled his eyes, "We were supposed to be in Hawaii _yesterday_. We had to postpone our meeting." He noticed Phillion heading for the exit, "Don't forget to turn off the lights."

"Running out of power, not on schedule, _and_ a missing fuel cap. One crisis at a time Ray." He flipped a series of switches on the wall, draining the room's overhead lights. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go fix this." The Captain hurried out of the bridge, leaving Takuya to steer under the dim glow of his monitors.

The _Gotengo_'s maze of hallways had not been designed by an intelligent man. Captain Phillion wasn't exceptionally tall, yet he always had to duck going through the ship's tunnels.

He would then climb a dangerously steep staircase to the next floor. If the architect really wanted to save space, he might as well have turned all the staircases into ladders. Phillion discovered they were easier to climb with the help of his hands anyways.

Everything seemed cheap. Everything felt lightweight. That was the price to pay for a submarine that could fly. Or it was just the typical beuracratic mess one could expect from G-Force.

The door to the ship's infirmary was always unlocked. Its deadbolt was missing. Captain Phillion made a habit of barging in to speak with the doctor, who had little more to do at this point than play psychiatrist for the crew. Felix Stark listened to Phillion and his problems, offering solutions if he could. But most of the time he would just nod.

"How are you this morning?" Phillion announced, immediately going over to the cabinets to fish out the aspirin.

Doctor Stark lowered his book, "Actually sir, it's almost midnight."

"Midnight?" Phillion spun around, startled.

"The last time we saw any natural light was a week ago when you dismantled the GPS beacon. Human bodies are not meant to live in the darkness."

"Well, we've got to hide somewhere. And we have oxygen reserves for another five days." Phillion emptied a container of pills all over the counter. "So did you hear the news?" He asked as he poured a glass of water, spilling a little on the counter.

"What news sir?" Stark removed his spectacles.

"Damn, is the intercom broken again?"

"I doubt it sir," Stark assured him, "I was busy reading my book."

"Oh, which one is it now?" Phillion swallowed a pill and sipped the glass.

"_Frankenstein_, Mary Shelley." He held it up, showing off the crumpled paperback cover.

"Haven't read it." Phillion swallowed another pill, "Anyways, we lost the secondary fuel cap."

"I don't know what that means."

The Captain shoved his box of pills back into the cabinet, "It means that my ship is falling apart. But it's nothing to worry about." He turned to leave, then stopped, "Well, it's nothing for _you_ to worry about."

The Doctor nodded and the Captain made his exit. With the door shut, Felix slipped his glasses back on and opened his novel.

Squeezing through a few more hallways, Phillion emerged into the common area, furnished with just enough metal chairs and tables to fool someone into thinking they could relax. Usually, this was the place where members of the crew spent their free time, and Phillion was hoping to find the mechanic taking a break. Amongst the handful of soldiers, Lucas Isley was nowhere to be seen.

A gruff voice bellowed from the corner, "What's this about the fuel thing missing?"

"It's nothing." Phillion assured his rugged weapons specialist, Jason Grogg. Grogg was busy beating another soldier in a game of checkers. He wouldn't take his eyes off the board.

"Doesn't sound like nothin'!" Grogg roared as he took one of his opponent's pieces. The other men in the break room were suddenly paying attention, worried that something had gone wrong. At 1,500 feet below the ocean's surface, nothing could afford to go wrong.

"Have you seen Lucas anywhere?"

"Are we going to drown?" Grogg responded.

"No. If anything, we'll explode."

The rest of the soldiers exchanged glances, not sure whether to take the news seriously. Grogg just nodded, "I'm okay with that. But if the ship's falling apart _now_, how is it going to hold up against big G?"

"That's why we're spending time to repair her." Phillion insisted, "All you have to do is worry about the guns, Mr. Grogg. Now, have _any of you_ seen Lucas?" He scanned the group again.

Grogg shrugged his giant shoulders, "He's probably off in the engine room fiddling with the gears. Wouldn't be surprised if he was the one who broke your fuel thing." Grogg moved a piece, "And speaking of guns, when am I going to be firing them?"

"As soon as we have an _arsenal to fire_." Phillion promised as he ran out. The soldiers looked to one another, then began speculating on what just happened.

Phillion raced down the long and narrow hallway to the engine room. Air became thick with steam. Walls seemed to groan under stress. Eventually, the Captain came to a massive sealed door. He had to strain his arms just to turn its lock and push it open, revealing a nightmarish jungle of pipes and gears.

The machine's would beat in unison, like some sort of monstrous, artificial heart powering the warship. The grated floor was littered with schematics and manuals, arranged in some sort of chaotic system that Phillion didn't understand. A grimy little man with a flashlight emerged from behind a fuel cell. When he saw the Captain, a friendly smile spread across his face.

"Hello sir!" Lucas Isley had to yell above the roar of the Gotengo's heartbeat, "I just finished restoring the cryogenic monitors! Did you figure out what the problem was outside?"

"The secondary fuel cap broke off!" Phillion dug his hands into his pockets, trying to keep them safe from dripping oil.

"Why did it break off?" Lucas yelled.

"I don't know!" Phillion admitted at the top of his lungs. "Can we talk somewhere else?"

Lucas motioned for the Captain to follow him. Together, they climbed through the overgrowth of pipes to a small door. Lucas pushed it open and allowed the Captain inside.

The walls were padded with carpeting in a futile attempt to drown out the noise. Lucas sealed the door behind them, but the massive beating still persisted.

The ceiling in this spare room was even lower than the rest of the ship. Keeping his head down, Phillion eyed Lucas' odd decoration of blueprints and wires. A mattress, thrown in the corner, was torn up and covered in a single space blanket.

"Do you sleep here?" Phillion asked, concerned.

"It's a cozy place to rest during the day." Lucas took a seat behind his little desk, "So you don't know why the cap broke off?"

"Probably because this ship was built in '71, and she hasn't been used since 1984." The Captain responded. "She's just old."

Lucas scoffed, "You can keep a ship running for centuries if you give her the proper love. You have to _listen_ to what she wants. _Care_ for her."

"You're not married, are you?"

"Nah. No woman for me." He smiled.

"She would just get jealous." Phillion smiled to himself, then returned to business, "So what would you recommend for this kind of thing? I mean, are we going to start leaking? Is the tank going to fill with water?"

Lucas waved away the idea, "She'll be okay."

Phillion was surprised, "No big deal?"

"Not really." Lucas shrugged, "The primary cap is secure, I checked it this morning. Her real problem is the drill speed."

"Is it still slow?"

"It's useless," Lucas responded bitterly, "And that isn't something I can just rewire and fix like the intercom. She'll need weeks. And I'll need more manpower."

"I can spare some of the weapons operators." Phillion suggested. "Grogg wont be happy, but they don't have anything to do. We'll transfer them to your command for the time being."

"If you think they can take it, Captain. Working with this girl isn't easy." He patted the intricate schematics of the Gotengo. "Oh, but she's worth it. Nice and flexible. You couldn't have picked a better warship, sir. Damn good one. Grogg wanted the Garuda, didn't he?" Lucas shook his head, "Dumb choice. It's just a flying cannon."

"I would've preferred Kiryu. Or anything built after the year 2000." Phillion admitted. He looked over the schematics of their ship, "But I like the Gotengo. She's a good ship. And she was easy to steal."

"She's a survivor." Lucas boasted.

The Captain smiled. "Keep me posted. I'll round up some men to help you work on the drill. And watch that fuel cap until we find a replacement."

"Yes sir."

The Captain left. Lucas saw him out, then returned to his tedious work repairing the forty year old warship. Phillion strolled down the hallway, relaxed and confident now that his worries had been put to rest. He ventured past the break room, where many of the soldiers were still caught up in their worried conversations. The only one who looked up to see the Captain pass was Jason Grogg. Phillion peeked into the infirmary to see that Felix Stark was reading, as always. He descended the steep staircase, nearly tripping on his way down, then returned to the command bridge at the front of the ship. He left the lights off as he came in. The glow from the monitors would be good enough. Takuya was still at the helm, piloting the massive ship with expert ease.

"Good news!" Phillion announced, "Everything's going to be okay." He took a seat at the station next to Takuya, "And I say we change our course. Head for Hawaii. By now, I think our guy's getting restless."

"I've been waiting for you to say that." Takuya grinned, pulling up a series of maps on the computer to formulate a new route.

Phillion smacked his buddy's shoulder. He cracked his knuckles and hustled back up to the platform where his command chair waited. He took a seat, sinking into the leather. This was where he belonged. This was where he felt at home.

A thin book sat on the armrest. Gently, Phillion picked it up. The cover was worn away by age, and the paper smelled ancient. It was Captain Phillion's favorite book, bought in a second hand store when he was eight. He had been fascinated with it ever since. It stayed on his shelf throughout college. It remained by his side on every campaign during his service in G-Force. Every boy needed a hero.

_To Kill a God: The Biography of Daisuke Serizawa_


	3. At the Heart of G-Force

Chapter II - At The Heart of G-Force

_"We are the guardian angels of the modern age. It is only through the combined might of our militaries that G-Force ensures peace on Earth. And while our threats may be severe, the unity between our nations has never been stronger. So as the number of kaiju continues to grow into the new millennium, our duty becomes more important every single day. For fifty years, G-Force has been pushing technological innovation. For fifty years, G-Force has stood against the onslaught of kaiju threats. For fifty years, G-Force has insured the future of mankind. And we will continue to fight."_

_-Excerpt from Admiral Yoshiyuki's 2005 UN speech_

X-X-X-X-X

_"G-Force is a bloated and ineffective shitshow of government failures that openly discourages people from doing anything useful. They also have the worst breakfast buffet in all of Tokyo."_

_-Entirety of Captain Phillion's final 2003 speech_

X-X-X-X-X

Admiral Yoshiyuki held dominion over an enormous office, its walls decorated in medals and awards. The Admiral's desk was carved from the timber of an oak. His chair was cushioned in polished black leather. A single pane of tinted glass stretched across the entire back wall.

His view overlooked the G-Force Command Hall, an underground chamber of men and women hustling through a maze of computer consoles. Enormous screens were stretched across the walls, displaying everything from weather patterns to stock markets. Officers shouted to one another. Phones rang endlessly. Governments from around the world were always being hailed. Funds were being transferred. Weapons were being traded. A man in Cairo was being fired. A woman in Chile was being hired to take his place. Mankind's economy flowed through the room, beating like a mechanical heart. Above it all, Admiral Yoshiyuki sat and watched.

He swiveled in his chair, turning to face Commander Randolph. The Commander sat on the opposite side of the huge desk, his back stiff and sore. Every year, Yoshiyuki was looking younger. His hair was darker. His skin looked fresh. His suits were slimmer. Meanwhile, Randolph could feel the effects of age wearing him down. He missed being young. He envied this man's lie.

Yoshiyuki poured a glass of vodka for the two of them. It was a friendly gesture. Long ago, the Admiral and the Commander had served together. Out on the open ocean. Pulling triggers and hunting kaiju. But that was another era. They chose radically different paths in G-Force.

"For obvious reasons, we don't want the media to get involved. Our reputation has already gone to hell with the Atoma Corporation." He passed the drink to Randolph. It tasted like silk.

"I understand, sir." Randolph assured him, although the notion of a cover-up didn't sound safe. What could be so important that it demanded a private meeting, face-to-face?

The Admiral leaned back in his giant chair, guzzling his alcohol until only the ice was left to clink in the glass as he set it down. Yoshiyuki breathed a heavy sigh, looking past his guest.

"You're a noble man, Randolph. This place needs more men like you." Randolph couldn't agree more.

The Admiral poured himself another drink, "Eight days ago, we had an incident at Fort Century. There was an explosion, they lost power, and the security system went down. Thank god nobody was hurt."

He sighed.

"But that's not the point. When the mess was finally sorted out, they discovered that a ship was missing. An entire ship. Just gone. The computers no longer had any record of it. It took another _two hours _for the shitheads down there to realize it had been stolen."

Randolph blinked. Startled, he cleared his throat, cocked his head, and asked, "Someone _stole_ a ship from G-Force?"

"Not just any ship," Yoshiyuki answered, "The _Gotengo_."

"Jesus Christ."

"You understand why I want to keep a lid on this."

"It should never have been stolen in the first place." Randolph insisted. Covering up the story was only part of a bigger problem. "Who the hell stole it?"

"We don't know," Yoshiyuki adjusted the knot of his tie, "But only someone with intimate knowledge of the G-Force computer systems could've erased the _Gotengo_'s data."

"So it's an inside job?" Randolph glared, doing the best he could to control his boiling rage.

"I have a team of investigators looking into this. They have a few suspects lined up, but it's hard to make any conclusions. The ship hasn't been seen or heard from since it disappeared."

"There were more than a few peoplewho stole this thing." Randolph pointed out, "The _Gotengo_ can only be operated by a dedicated crew. This was a coordinated effort by a team of people."

"But someone had to lead them." Yoshiyuki replied, "A Captain with people following him."

"Then someone to pilot the _Gotengo_." Commander Randolph sighed, trying to recall the details of the ship, "Another person with skills in engineering. Someone who can operate the weapon mechanics. Not to mention all the people to carry out the team's orders. If they know what they're doing, they'll have a doctor too."

"We have no idea how all of these people managed to steal it and go undetected." The Admiral shrugged, "But if they could get it up and running, if they manage to acquire an _arsenal_, that ship would be very dangerous in the wrong hands."

"Of course it would be." Randolph replied, scornful.

"That's why I'm trusting you to take it down."

The Commander scowled and looked off. Of course. This was the plan all along. He was being used like a janitor, cleaning up the mess G-Force left behind. Yoshiyuki wanted him to believe it was a noble job, but all Randolph felt was a deep hatred for the whole organization.

Nothing new.

The Commander cleared his throat, "I was scheduled to escort Atoma Corp's cargo from Honolulu to Osaka. We were already short on guns, are you sure you want to take me off?" Randolph could predict the answer.

"We'll have to make do. Your talents are needed elsewhere."

"Of course."

"We'll tell the Atoma Corporation that there was a conflict in your schedule. Technically, that is the truth. Captain Sullivan will take your place. They wont mind."

"Sullivan hasn't led a single battle. He's young. Send somebody else." Randolph insisted.

The Admiral shook his head, "I appreciate your input Commander, but you don't need to be concerned. Sullivan is a good friend. I can trust him to escort cargo across the Pacific Ocean."

"We already know that Godzilla is in the area." Randolph was on the brink of shouting. "If he attacks Atoma Corp's ships, your man wont know what to do."

The Admiral held up a hand, silencing his guest, "Not everyone can be as heroic as you, Commander. I have faith in our weaponry. Let me worry about the logistics. You have a new duty."

Randolph felt a vein bulging in his neck. His teeth were grinding. All the while, it looked as if the Admiral was okay with the whole situation. He was a little embarrassed, but far from concerned. Randolph swallowed and tried to ease himself.

"Believe me," Yoshiyuki insisted, "This news was not easy to hear. Do you realize how many people I'm going to have to fire? The entire security staff at Fort Century will be out on the streets."

"I need another ship." Randolph demanded, locking eyes with his boss.

"Whatever you think will be necessary."

"I need the _Garuda_, if Captain Hinojos will comply."

"That wont be a problem."

"No, it wont be. That's why I also want the _Satsuma_."

"Three ships under your command?" Yoshiyuki raised an eyebrow.

"The _Gotengo_ is a submarine with airborne capabilities. It can travel underwater, across the surface, and in the sky. I assure you, three ships will be necessary to capture the _Gotengo_."

"Don't worry about capturing it." The Admiral instructed, "The _Gotengo_ was decommissioned two decades ago. We can afford to have it taken out."

Randolph wanted to clarify, "Are you giving me permission to kill these people?"

"We have to be realistic," Admiral Yoshiyuki told him, "We probably wont have a chance to take these pirates into custody."

"Then I'll destroy it." Randolph promised with a piercing scowl, "Send the details to my Lieutenant." He rose from his seat, gave a quick salute, and marched across the office.

Randolph was use to killing monsters. His entire military career had been focused on the elimination of kaiju threats. He was the best of the best. But he had never aimed the barrel at another human being. Although the new mission was simple enough, Admiral Randolph wasn't sure how he felt about shooting down a ship full of people. Even if those people were a danger to the civilized world, in much the same way a kaiju was, they were still people.

Neither men said goodbye.

Admiral Yoshiyuki waited for the door to click shut, took another drink, and turned his chair back to the window. From up above, he could safely watch the daily motions of his organization being played out on a worldwide stage.


End file.
